At Least I Have Nothing
by SummerTimePlz
Summary: Subject: A21-0 was taken from Terra as a small child for her genetics. She was supposed to be their weapon. That was until a clerical error made her run into another living test subject. Thus set off a chain of reactions which led to the escape of one and the continued torture of the other. But both were given hope, the greatest gift of all.
1. Chapter 1

"STAR LORD! STAR LORD! STAR LORD!"

Currently, Peter Quill—better known as Star Lord after the defeat of Ronan the Accuser—was facing off against a smug yellow-skinned Xandarian who foolishly bet Peter 300 units in a shot drinking contest. The table they resided at was quickly surrounded by different species making their own beats on who the winner would be. Their drunken chants could be heard throughout the small, dingy pub which was making Star Lord's head inflate to a size one would have thought wasn't possible.

Inhaling his last cup, Star Lord slammed his glass down releasing a victorious roar as everyone burst into cheers. "And THAT'S how you do it baby! WOO-HOO!" His defeated opponent (who knew his was wife was gonna kill him for losing the units that was supposed to go to next month's rent) begrudgingly handed over the 300 and pushed his way out before his drunken state got him into any more trouble.

With probably the smuggest look in the entire galaxy, Star Lord clumsily climbed on top of the table. "A-Attention my good friends! To celebrate the glorious victory of *burp* …of the AMAZING Star Lord," Peter slowly turned in a circle with his arms spread out looking at the expectant faces of his 'friends', "drinks are ON ME!" The crowd roars louder than before, once again chanting his name.

In a dimly lit corner finishing off her second glass of Tonic Cooler, a pink hued humanoid could only roll her eyes at the scene that unfolded before her. _Of all the things I heard about the 'great' Star Lord, they seemed to have left out the part of him being a cocky jackass. Ha. This'll be too easy. _Making her way to the counter she ordered another glass taking advantage of the free drinks. _Might as well._ She took a long swig knowing it'll be a long time before Peter makes his leave. _Damn. It's worth it though.._

* * *

For a good three hours she waited at her table.

_Three goddamn hours._

The pink woman was slightly dozing off when she was suddenly awoken by the whines given off by the occupants of the pub.

"Oh please stay a little longer Star Lord!"

"Yeah man, the night's still young"

"Don't be such a _Vrurq"_

"Bro, don't call me Vrurq. Not cool,'' Peter called out to the Xandarian who quickly looked down, ashamed at himself. "But anyways, I'm totally wasted and best be off b-before I worry the folks back home. This was totally fun, we should d-definitely do this agains" slurred Peter. Stumbling out the door he couldn't help but grin hearing the cheers of his 'friends' who couldn't wait to hang out with him again.

In reality they couldn't wait for the free drinks he would give.

As Peter made his way through the streets the pink woman followed closely behind.

_It's now or never. This is your chance to see if it's really him. Your chance to __**see **__him._

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Let's do this,'' she whispered.

The young woman walked up to the intoxicated man and tapped his shoulder. "Umm excuse me sir.. but you seem to be having some trouble getting home?" She fluttered her eyelashes and did the best cutesy act she could muster.

Peter turned around gripping a nearby streetlight for balance. His eyes widened at the sight before him. Standing right in front of him was a light pink woman with silver hair. She wore a black colored jumpsuit which hugged her curves nicely. The front zipper was low enough to show a considerate amount of cleavage. Her eyes, which matched the color of her hair, seemed teasing and playful. This woman was a knock out. Albeit pretty short, her head only barely reaching his shoulder but nonetheless. But….but what was she doing here in the dead of night (or was it early morning?), and why is there three of her? _'Cause you're fucking wasted moron. _

He shook his head and looked back at her through squinted eyes. "Well uh, I was doing pretty well 'til about three seconds ago," the woman gave a shy smile which he found incredibly cute, "but the m-million dollar question is: What is a pretty girl like you doing out here in the dark of night? Don't you know it's dangerous?"

The woman began to slowly make her way over to him biting at her lower lip. In his drunken state he began to get a bit turned on, only to feel slight guilt as he thought of Gamora.

"I get restless at night and like to take walks outside." She shrugged. " Helps clear the head." She tapped Peter's head which made him almost lose his balance. "And I can take pretty good care of myself for your information. Can _you? _Don't you know it's dangerous to be outside in the dead of night being so drunk you can't even walk straight?" To prove her point she pulled Peter towards her only to have him fall on his face.

Peter groaned and grabbed his stomach trying to hold in the drinks he consumed not that long ago. _What the…_

She rolled him onto his back and leaned down close to his face. "Dude, I could've stabbed you in the eye just for the hell of it. You could have a freakin' knife in your eye right now!" The seductive demeanor she wore was completely gone now. Her hands were searching through Peter's trench coat, easily pushing away his hands that tried to stop her. "A-ha," she triumphantly said as she held out a small holocard.

_Owner: Peter Jason Quill_

_Starship: Milano_

_Passengers: 5_

_Days remaining: 3_

_Star Station: 1q-0E3-R_

"Wha-what are you d-doin," Peter stammered out. He tried to sit up only to fall back down. The world around him was spinning.

The woman before him put the card back in its place and pushed herself up. "You're pretty far from where you need to be Quill. You never would've made it. And now I'm gonna have to drag your ass all the way over there so be grateful you _homo degeneratus._" She looked down at him with arms crossed and couldn't help feel bad for him. Here's Star Lord - the hero of Xandar - lying in some dirty street about to puke his stomach out.

Looking up at the woman, or should he say women since he was seeing double, Peter could only let out a garbled chuckle. _At least I don't have a knife in my eye..._

With that the pink-skinned humanoid swiftly kicked his head knocking him out cold.

"Peter Jason Quill, or should I say Star Lord, it is going to be a _pleasure _taking you to 1q-0E3-R. Not only are you a good foot taller than me and weigh a lot more, the star station is about a mile away. This is going to be the _funnest night in the entire galaxy _and you won't even remember a damn thing," she grabbed ahold of his torso, "freakin a-hole.''


	2. Chapter 2

**um..hi! I totally would have updated sooner but grandpa procrastination came to town for a visit. He's gone now so that's good.**

**I just wanted to say thanks for the reviews, they totally made my week :)) **

After what seemed like a millennium she was finally able to bring him to the Milano. She unceremoniously dropped him to the ground putting her hands on her knees. A sheer line of sweat covered her forehead from having to drag his 180 pound frame for a mile.

Exhaustion. That's what normal people felt.

She smiled.

The pink humanoid closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. While fixing herself up to the best of her abilities, she mentally rehearsed the story she came up with on the way there. _Peter and I were having an awesome time at this pub until he got totally wasted. He told me if I brought him home safely he'd owe me big time. About halfway here he passed out and I had to drag him the rest of the way. May I please come in?_

"Oh clusters I hope they buy it,'' she sighed. From what she heard they were skilled fighters; dangerous. But hey, so was she. Plus they were her only chance to get off this planet before _they _found her. So it had to work.

With a renewed sense of determination she bawled up her fist and gave the Milano's front door three sharp knocks. Almost immediately after she heard feet rushing to slide the door open.

"Peter!"

A green-skinned woman stood at the entrance hoping to see Peter, but to only find a small pink female instead. She was briefly reminded of Carina, The Collector's slave, who had died trying to gain freedom. But this woman had a skin tone much lighter than Carinas and her hair was a dark shade of gray. "Who are you," she coldly asked, angry that it was not Peter.

"Uh, hi! I was actually bringing sweet Peter here back home. Maybe we shoul-" the pink woman was cut off as the green girl pushed her aside to kneel down by Peter.

"What happened?!" the green hued woman asked as she worriedly checked Peter's vitals. A sigh of relief could be heard as she felt his heart beating.

The smaller of the two walked towards Peter and wrapped her arms around his knees, "How about we bring him in first and then I'll tell ya what happened?" the green one gave one last look at Peter before getting up and lifting up his arms. Together the two females were able to bring him inside the ship and lay him down on the red lounge couch in the main area.

"Explain. _Now._" The green colored female sat protectively by Peter with her arms crossed. She looked down to the pink girl who had positioned herself on the floor.

Taking a gulp she began to tell Peter's friend (_more like overprotective girlfriend)_ how they met at a bar and spent the night drinking having a 'radical time'. She explained how Peter had made her his Plan A in getting home if he drank too much. "To no one's surprise it led to that and halfway here he passes out."

"And why didn't you just leave him where he fell? Why go through the trouble?"

"Do I look like an asshole or something?" The green woman simply shrugged.

The pink female let out a sigh. "Anyways, I didn't just leave him there because I'm actually a good person," in a much smaller voice she added, "…and because he'd promised he'll pay me.."

Pinching the bridge of her noise the green female gave the unconscious man a death glare. _Just great Peter. We're low on units as it is and here you are promising people money._

"Don't worry I don't want any units,'' the pink woman quickly said as if reading her mind. "If I could just hitch a ride that would be great."

The green woman thought this over. _She doesn't seem dangerous and we're leaving soon anyways… _"I guess that will be alright. If Peter promised you payment then you will receive it. Especially since you had to drag his unconscious body here all by yourself. That must've not been fun."

"Trust me, it wasn't. What the hell do you feed him anyways? He's like a pregnant _O'gaar_!"

Both females let out a small chuckle.

_Heck yeah, it worked! But where is everyone else..?_

The green hued woman stood up, followed by the pink girl. "My name is Gamora. Thank you for bringing Peter back." The pink humanoid could see the love this woman, Gamora, held for Peter.

She felt a longing in her heart.

"So what is your name," Gamora asked.

_Ohshitohshitohshit. Oh. Shit. How stupid am I? I forgot to think of a name! _Being as inconspicuous as possible she looked around the room until her eyes landed on a small 'L' shaped contraption. _Hmm..L….L….Got it!_

Gamora looked at the strange girl who seemed, worried? But why? Her thoughts were beginning to grow suspicious until the female finally spoke up.

"Ellie! My name is Ellie. It's a pleasure to meet you." She gave a quick awkward bow slightly stepping back taking a good look at her surroundings. _I guess Ellie it is._ "So uh, where's the rest of you?"

"How do you know there are more passengers on board?" Gamora asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Peter is Star Lord, leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Not only did you save Xandar, but you guys killed Ronan the freakin' Accuser. Everyone everywhere knows about that."

"Oh, right.."

Sheepishly looking down, Gamora was about to get to Ellie's question when they heard a moan coming from behind them. She kneeled beside Peter and touched his forehead. He winced slightly and began to mutter incoherently. "He has a slight fever and this bump on his head is throbbing strongly. How hard did this foolish man fall? " She shook her head.

Ellie could see the worry on Gamora's face. _Shit, I shouldn't have kicked him so hard. _She picked up the cleanest rag she could find and soaked it in some water. Gamora nodded her thanks as she handed it to her.

"The others are downstairs sleeping. For the sake of not disturbing them, you may find a place to sleep up here. You must be tired so please rest. I'll stay up and make sure this _fool_ doesn't choke on his vomit. We shall discuss things more tomorrow."

Ellie would have objected but her exhaustion started to set in. "Well… all right." She pushed aside her guilt and began looking for a spot to sleep. A corner with a couple of boxes caught her eye. Walking over she noticed they were filled with metallic scraps. She placed them on a table and stretched out on the floor's comfy carpet. Ellie's feelings of nervousness, curiosity, and slight fear began to fade as her eyes closed and body relaxed. _Everything will be all right._

But for poor Ellie, that serenity would not last.


	3. Chapter 3

**;_;**

_It's cold._

_Why is it always so cold?_

* * *

The two suns of Xandar were slowly making their way up the horizon. A night of nursing Peter's fever had left Gamora exhausted. She rested on the floor with her head on the couch.

All occupants were still asleep; their breaths creating a steady hum that sounded throughout the ship. It wouldn't be long before they awoke.

* * *

_What is this place? Where am I?_

_…__who am I?_

* * *

A small yawn escaped the _Flora Colossus _that resided in his pot below deck. It's been a few months since the events of Xandar had taken place and the little sproutling was now a good ten inches tall. He'll need a new pot soon.

Groot, as the creature liked to be called, groggily opened his eyes and looked around. His furry companion lay next to him occasionally twitching his ear. He smiled. Groot liked seeing his friend sleep; it was the only time he looked at peace.

The plant creature closed his eyes.

* * *

_"__Subject: A21-0 ready to begin learning program #13," announced a red-skinned man to another who stood behind a large control console._

_"__S-sir, are you sure about this? Isn't it too soon to start up another program? She just finished one about an h-" _

_"__**Enough!**__" The young boy was abruptly cut off by his superior. "We have to push forward. Our men barely escaped Terra with the stones and we don't know how long we'll have them before we're caught. So start it. Now."_

_Renly peered out the glass window that separated them from the young female who gently floated in her tank. He looked at her nude body and all the cables that sprouted from it. Her white hair swirled around her face in an almost teasing manner._

_The boy's hand hesitated over the button that would start her program. He knew it was too soon to begin another one. The bombardment on her mind would be too much. But he reluctantly pressed it down remembering his superior's words, 'she is in a comatose state, she can't feel.'_

_He hoped it was true._

* * *

Peter began to stir.

His hand rose to scratch an itch on his neck and when he brought it down again he ended up shoving Gamora's head off the couch. She awoke abruptly and grabbed hold off Peter's hand in self-defense. "Ow, ow, ow!" The stupefied male scrunched up his face and tried to yank his hand away to no avail. Gamora released him when she realized there was no threat other than her possibly catching his idiocracy.

"Wha-what the…? Gamora? What ha-" Peter stopped mid sentence and shot straight up from where he lay. A hand covered his mouth as he tried to hold in vomit. Already having anticipated this, Gamora handed him a bucket to which he immediately began to fill with his puke.

Gamora could only look away with disgust.

* * *

_A surge of electricity was sent into the young girl's body. Image after image flashed in her mind. This, whatever it was, wasn't like the previous ones. The bombardment in her head was excruciating.  
_

_"Someone please help me! Make it stop! Make it stop!" She wailed and thrashed about at the horrible scenes that unfolded before her._

_Too much pain and sorrow. Too much knowledge!_

_"WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING?! WHAT IS THIS? I DON'T WANT TO SEE THESE THINGS! I DON'T WANT TO KNOW! HELP ME! HELP ME!"_

_Renly stood by the window that separated the two rooms. He looked at the girl peacefully floating in the tank and blushed lightly as he caught himself staring at her chest for too long. "Everything seems to be going nicely," he lightly said to himself, "sixty percent complete."_

_He looked up and smiled. "Two more programs to go.."_

* * *

"..I think...I'm d-dying Gamora," Peter choked out as his stomach settled down.

"You're just hung-over! Peter I can't believe you! You leave saying you're going to get the spare part Rocket needed for the ship only to end up being _dragged _here _eleven hours later_!" She roughly slammed a cabinet door and pushed a bottle of pain killers towards Peter. He smirked.

"Awww _Gammy_, you were worried about me," Peter said as he popped a few pills in his mouth.

Gamora blushed then suddenly shot him a death glare after realizing what he just said. "What did you just call me?"

He gulped. "N-nothing. So uh, did you say I was dragged here?" The man began to slowly get up. As his dizziness faded he looked around the room trying to remember anything. He spotted a figure in the corner. "What the heck is that?"

"The person who you promised to pay to get you back to the ship! I swear Peter one of these days..."

Downstairs the occupants began to stir.

"What the hell is all that freakin' noise! I'm trying to get sleep here damn it!"

* * *

_I...I can't breathe.  
_

_The water in the tank was being flushed out. "Quickly, unhook her and prepare to resuscitate."_

_"Yes sir!"_

_Renly, along with two fellow scientists began to detach the cables. They set her body on a cool metal table. "Beginning chest compressions," Renly said with a determined face. He placed his hands over the correct spot on her chest and began to rhythmically pump down. Seeing it was not working, another tried to step up to perform mouth-to-mouth but was pushed away. Renly did it himself._

_The girl began to violently cough up fluids._

_She kept her eyes closed as the lights were too bright. "Help..me.." she managed to choke out softly. She was in so much pain._

_"Don't worry little bird, you're safe now."_

* * *

"What is all this ruckus? I was trying to sleep with the fishes." A blue head popped out of the hatch that lead downstairs. "Haha! I am only joking, that was a metaphor!" he said with a chuckle.

"Yup, we still gotta work on your metaphor skills bub," exclaimed Peter.

Gamora rolled her eyes. "Sorry for waking you up Drax. It's all _this_ idiots fault."

"Hey!"

"Ah, I see Quill did not get killed after all. I am glad to see you made it home my friend," he patted his shoulder just a bit too roughly, "sadly now you must face the woman's wrath."

"Gee thanks Drax," Peter muttered with a pout.

"You brought this upon yourself when you decided to get drunk off your ass! Now hurry and get cleaned up. When the girl wakes you WILL honor your word Peter. You made a promise and now you must follow through with it."

Spotting the female sleeping soundly on the floor Drax began to put two and two together. "You know Quill, Rocket will not be happy when he finds out you laid your prostitute in his work space."

"What?! She's NOT a prostitute! I don't even know who the heck this is! She's-" Peter quieted down as he saw his furry teammate staring at the unconscious girl on the floor.

Hearing that the noise wasn't going to go down anytime soon, Rocket decided to go up and shut some mouths himself. That was until he saw a chick (probably some dirty slut) in his corner.

"What in the hell is this?" Rocket's voice was eerily calm.

Peter stood up and held his hands out. "Now, Rocket just be cool man. It's-"

"What's my box doing on the table? I didn't put it here." He nudged the cardboard.

No one moved as Rocket made his way back down the hatch.

Everyone let out a breath. "Well that was a close one. I'm surprised Rocket didn't freak." Peter sat back down. Just as he began speak up again, yelling could be heard from downstairs. "Oh shit"

Rocket leaped on to the main floor, eyes wide with anger. He loaded up his signature weapon and pointed it straight at the sleeping woman. "I'LL KILL THIS BIITCH!"

* * *

_The young girl slowly opened her eyes. Looking around she noticed she was on a bed. Light brown fabric adorned her body. _

_"**I see you're awake**."_

_The girl froze. A male's voice boomed throughout the room she was in._

_"**Do not be alarmed little bird, I'll be right in**."_

_Not a second later did a man step through a door she failed to see. He looked at her for a moment before slowly making his way to the bed. Frightened, the girl could only stare. She noticed his shaggy green hair and peach colored skin. He had black-rimmed glasses over his multi-colored eyes. He stood at a 5'8 height and weighed approximately 140.2 pounds. He was born eighteen years ago, had broken his tibia at a young age thus explaining the slight limp, and had a scar on his left forearm that seems to have come from a knife. She gulped. H-how do I know all this..?  
_

_"You.." her voice was soft and ragged, "you are an Ualni from the planet Zarine. Your people are known for their astonishing scientific achievements. I believe they are the ones who first discovered space travel. But how...how do I know all this..?" Her green eyes glistened with fear. _

_"What is this place? Where am I? ...who am I?"_

* * *

Just as Rocket was about to pull the trigger, the woman suddenly shot up breathing heavily. At that same exact moment the ground began to shake. It started as a low rumble but quickly turned violent. "It's a macroseism! Everyone down!" Gamora shouted. The Guardians held tight to surrounding furniture. Ellie, however, focused on controlling her breathing.

As her heart calmed, so did the quake until it came to an abrupt stop.


End file.
